Page 194 of Caged Between the Beta & Alpha
“You tried to distract her! I’d rather she carved my face up, I need your handsome face intact,” Taylor scolded him, despite still sounding weak himself.
“Likewise,” Zack said, tangling his fingers in his mate’s hair and yanking him close. He kissed him hard. I looked down at my own just as Robyn returned with a few of the warriors.
“Get this place cleaned up,” I said before pulling away from Raven. “Go with Dad. I’ll be home soon.”
She hesitated but nodded as Dad placed his arm around her. I walked past Robyn, not missing the relief on her face as she glanced at Damon. I smiled slightly.Who knows…?
I walked through the dark pack grounds, heading to the children’s graveyard. Renji’s remains may no longer be in that coffin, but I was not going to let the grave stay like that. I had felt her pain, and it had fucking torn me apart.
I entered the graveyard, taking a moment to find his grave. I smiled slightly, seeing the plushie I recognised at the foot of the tombstone. Crouching down, I began to dig it up completely, my heart squeezing once more. I wouldn’t let this area become a bad memory for her. It was the last thing she had of him.I’ll clean it out for her…
An hour later, I sat back, brushing some dirt off my hands. I had removed the coffin; Nina had left a lot of disturbing messages on it, written in what was clearly blood and scratched into the wood of the coffin. It was again just soil, yet it had been the place he had once lay. Once I was done, I went to the Jacobs’ home once again, a place that was still being cleaned out. Heading to the attic, I began searching for anything of Renji’s. I wanted to return to Raven, but I couldn’t go empty-handed, not after seeing that broken look in her eyes.
I finally found it; a small old metal carry case with a blue R painted on it in the farthest corner of the attic. I brushed the dust off it, opening it up, and hoped my gut instincts were correct. I smiled in relief, looking at the box, which contained some children’s clothing, photos, a toy, a pacifier, a bottle, and a blanket. She’d be happy with these….
I stood up, glancing around the attic. I was sure when she was ready, she would come and see if there was anything she wanted, and then I was going to burn this place to the ground. I just hoped with it… all of its bad memories would fade away too…
Raven
Two hours hadpassed, and Liam still wasn’t back…
After showering, we filled Aunty Red in on everything over some hot drinks. Although she was keeping me company, the mention of Hank Williamson had made her go into deep thought, so I gave the couple some privacy, calling it a night.
I had pondered on everything, mind-linking Damon and Taylor to ask how he and Zack were doing. I had texted Kiara for a bit as well, but I knew it was late and having three little chibis to look after wasn’t easy. I sighed, staring up at the night sky through the open curtains, smiling sadly. We had caught the killer, but Renji’s grave… what she had done made me sick.
I wrapped my arms around my legs, burying my head in my knees. She had thrown his remains away… the last I had of him. No sound escaped me, yet tears trickled down my cheeks.
A short while later, the door opened, and Liam’s scent mixed with earth and dust hit me. I quickly wiped my tears away, looked up, and our eyes met. He came over, placed the case he was carrying on the bed and was about to pull me into his arms when he hesitated, glancing at himself before quickly pulling his dirty top off and scooping me up into his arms.
“Why did you take so long?” I asked, unable to stop myself.
“I needed to make things better,” he said quietly.
His fingers weaved into my hair as he stared down at me, kissing me softly. I looked at him, resting my head on his chest and closing my eyes as I clung to him, enjoying the warmth of his embrace and those pleasant sparks of the bond.
“I brought you something,” he said softly.
“Hmm?”
“I cleared Renji’s grave out. That place is no longer tainted… I know that she got rid of… his remains… but always remember that he’s always been a part of you,” he said, softly caressing my cheek as he stared intomy eyes. “He lives on as a part of you, Bite-size, and no one could take that away from you; not your parents, not Nina, no one.”
My heart thudded at his words, and I realised how true that was. Renji’s eye was still a part of me. I still had him by my side.
“But I still thought you might want something more of him, so I did a little digging and found this.” He unwrapped one arm from around me and reached for the case, opening it up with one hand.
My stomach did a flip as I stared at the blue baby shawl. I knew what this was: Renji’s things… a case of his memories! I moved forward, taking the blanket out. The smell of old mothballs lingered, but my heart soared. Renji’s belongings…
Liam kissed my forehead softly, running his fingers through my hair as I stared at the box of treasure before me.
“I’ll go shower,” he said softly.
I glanced up at him and nodded, knowing he was giving me a moment alone. His lips pressed against mine, softly sending sparks coursing through me before he moved away, leaving me a little lightheaded. I turned back to the case, slowly taking each item out.
Photographs…
I looked through them, my heart thudding loudly. He looked like me... there were so many similarities. Although I knew he had been a couple years old, it was clear he was a lot smaller than he should have been for his age, and he was extremely thin. There were a few pictures where he had a head full of black hair, but there were many where he was bald. I smiled sadly at the picture. Was it selfish to wish he was alive? I just hoped he was in a good place. Did heaven exist?
I hugged the picture to my chest, tears spilling down my cheeks as I rocked myself gently. Renji…
